“Where are we going?” Sage asked.
Willow bit her lip.
Christian looked between Landyn and Raven, unease washing over him. He had no idea where they should go or where they would be safe.
“England.” Willow’s voice was a whisper, as though she were afraid of speaking the word aloud. All eyes fell on her, and she nervously shifted her gaze to Sage. “England,” she repeated more firmly.
“England?” Raven reiterated, confused.
Willow looked at Sage. “That’s where the directions start. In England.”
Chapter Five
Willow perched on a fallen tree, her knees tucked beneath her chin, as she watched the others huddle together in the clearing, comparing the etching of the flower to the book of maps. It was an exact copy. She was right.
The moon crept through the canopy of branches, casting a muted pattern of shadows on the ground.
Sage held the open book, and the rest of them leaned over, breathlessly observing. Curiosity was high for all of them. But there was a sense of trepidation in the air. It felt as if something big was about to happen.
For everyone but Willow.
Willow’s shoulders drooped. What was she going to do? She rested her chin on her knees. Her booted feet lay on a carpet of clovers. But she didn’t want to look for a four-leaf clover. What good would it do? If it really brought luck, the one she had found would have destroyed the book of maps, so they never had to cross the water.
Mercy, her horse, nudged her from behind.
Mercy knew how she was feeling—exactly the opposite of all of them; she was worried, fearful, and scared. Willow stood, her hands gently cradling the horse’s muzzle. Her brows knitted as she gave Mercy a tender kiss on her nose.
“You did it, Will.” Raven had come up behind her, leaving the group.
Yes. She had condemned herself to terror.
“You were right.”
Yes. But she didn’t feel any relief.
“What’s wrong?”
Willow stroked Mercy’s nose. “England is a long way from here.”
“Yes,” Raven agreed. “But you’ve traveled far before.”
“Not that far,” she whispered.
Raven scowled and stepped up close beside her. “We’ll all be traveling with you. Even Christian. That can’t be what is bothering you.”
“No,” Willow agreed. It wasn’t the thought of traipsing through unfamiliar territory that made her reluctant to go. She had to admit that she might be as thrilled as the others to solve the mystery if… “I don’t think I can go with you.”
“Of course, you can. And you will.”
“I want to,” she admitted, her heart heavy with dread. Raven would laugh and tease her for her fear, and it would come as yet another reminder of how she wasn’t as brave or as strong or as smart as her sisters. She swallowed. “Of course I will.” She clenched her teeth and lied, “I just don’t want to leave Mercy.”
The horse nickered mockingly.
“We will bring our horses. We can’t travel without them.”
Maybe they wouldn’t be able to find a ship to transport them and their horses. That was Willow’s only hope.
“I know a man with a ship,” Landyn admitted to the group loud enough for Willow to hear. “We’ll have to be careful, but I’m sure he will take us across the English Channel.”
